Mammoet handles a 2,000-ton German nuclear reactor

ROSHARON, Texas — The decommissioning of a nuclear pilot reactor in Jülich, Germany, has reached an important milestone after Mammoet removed the reactor vessel from the plant during a highly complex operation.

The reactor was a prototype pebble bed reactor, which was constructed in the 1960s. Its purpose was to demonstrate the feasibility and viability of a gas-cooled, graphite-moderated high temperature reactor. It was shut down in 1988 after 20 years of operation. The facility is being decommissioned by AVR GmbH. Mammoet was contracted to design and execute the removal of the most critical part, the reactor vessel, from the plant.

Mammoet custom designed the skidding and lifting equipment to move the reactor vessel from the reactor building into the material lock. The vessel weighs 2,000 tons, is 26 meters high and has a diameter of 7.6 meters. It was lifted from its former position in the reactor building, moved and then placed into a custom-built support frame.

Later this year, the reactor vessel will be lifted out of its support frame and moved from its current vertical position into a horizontal position.